Thursday, May 11, 2017

A SdKfz 124 Wespe at 1-32 scale has been made by my brother following the built of 4 towed 105 mm ie FH 18/2.

I decided to make more gun barrels to equip 4 Wespe. Here some historical facts about that tank quoted from Wikipedia:

"In 1940, during the Battle of France, it was apparent that the intermediate tank of the German forces, the Panzer II, was unsuitable as a main battle tank. Though mechanically sound, it was both under-gunned and under-armoured. The chassis, however, proved servicable for providing mobility to the 10.5 cmfield howitzer.

The design for the Wespe was produced by Alkett, and was based on the Panzer II Ausf. F chassis (...) Amongst other modifications to the Panzer II, the engine was moved forward and the chassis was slightly lengthened to gain sufficient space for the rear-mounted 10.5 cm leFH 18 howitzer. The superstructure was lightly armored, with 10 mm armor plate (enough to stop small arms fire) and was open at the top and to the rear. The vehicles were produced by FAMO's Ursus plant in Warsaw.

The Wespe was in production from February 1943 until June 1944, when Soviet forces approached the frontier. By that time, 676 had been produced. An additional 159 were modified to serve as mobile artillery ammunition carriers.[1] "

Monday, February 27, 2017

"The Panzerkampfwagen IV (PzKpfw IV), commonly known as the Panzer IV, was a Germanmedium tank developed in the late 1930s and used extensively during the Second World War. Its ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz. 161.

The Panzer IV saw service in all combat theaters involving Germany and was the only German tank to remain in continuous production throughout the war. Upgrades and design modifications, intended to counter new threats, extended its service life. Generally, these involved increasing the Panzer IV's armor protection or upgrading its weapons, although during the last months of the war, with Germany's pressing need for rapid replacement of losses, design changes also included simplifications to speed up the manufacturing process."

Panzer IV, a versatile design

To be able to cover all the evolution of the Panzer IV during the war, my brother built two types of turrets. One with the short 75mm and one with the long 75 mm barrel.